(Author's note: The dialogues in telepathy are italicized.)

  "Wa... wa... wa..."

  "Sh... Little An! Don't cry!"

  In the tiny, run-down house where the Lanes once lived, two boys were floundering around a one-year-old girl, clumsily trying to soothe her. Despite their efforts, Anna wouldn't stop crying. Jason and Kyle exchanged desperate glances, unsure of what to do. Their father had been away for months, and their mother wouldn't return until late at night.

  "Wa... wa... wa..."

  Just then, the door clicked open, and Gabriel appeared.

  "I'm back!" the eight-year-old exclaimed, setting down his backpack. His smile faded when he noticed Anna bawling in Jason's arms.

  "What's wrong with her?" Gabriel asked.

  "I'm not sure," Jason replied, looking puzzled—a rare sight for the eldest brother, known for his "super intelligence" and calm demeanor. "She doesn't show any signs of illness or hunger."

  "You know our princess," Kyle said, shaking his head in frustration. "Super sensitive. She can cry at the slightest touch, God knows why."

  "Here, let me try." Gabriel held out his hands after swiftly washing them.

  Jason nervously handed Anna over. Gabriel settled her head on his shoulder, gently patting her back and whispering, imitating their mother, "There... there... It's okay, honey. It's okay."

  To Jason and Kyle's amusement, Anna's cries gradually subsided. Her big, round sapphire eyes blinked peacefully, and the tears stopped flowing. Gabriel continued to pat her tiny back in rhythm with his humming.

  "Baa baa, Black Sheep, have you any wool?

  Yes, sir. Yes, sir, three bags full."

  Feeling safe and comfortable, Anna's eyes grew heavy. Her small hands wrapped around Gabriel's neck, hugging him tightly.

  Gabriel kept singing the old children's song:

  "One for the master, one for the dame.

  One for the little kids who live at the Lanes'.

  Baa, baa, black sheep, have you any wool?

  Yes, sir, yes, sir, three bags full..."

  Anna yawned and fell asleep in Gabriel's arms, his soothing voice became more and more distant.

  ___

  Anna opens her eyes again, staring at the white ceiling above her therapy chair. A nostalgic sadness lingers in her gaze, as if her mind still resides in that old house.

  "So, how was it?" Hellen, Anna's psychologist—a middle-aged woman with a warm, caring aura—asks gently, bringing Anna back to the present.

  Anna blinks, sitting up in her chair to recount her memory. "My ability just manifested back then," she sighs. "All those strange thoughts and feelings were overwhelming and frightening. Jay's mind was too loud; it was like a non-stop roller coaster. Kay was even worse, with all those thrillers and crime novels he was into. They didn't know what was wrong with me, and I couldn't tell them clearly. It was a disaster."

  Smiling softly, Anna continues, "But Gab... I mean, Gabriel was different. I felt much calmer and more at ease with him. Maybe it was because he was younger and didn't think too much? He only had nice thoughts while cradling me—like peaceful green fields, cute pets, or our parents' smiling faces. That old song, too—it was funny how he added our family name."

  Her face brightens for a moment before fading into sadness again. "It was the first melody I could remember."

  The sunlit room falls quiet for a moment before Hellen offers her observation. "You liked your third brother a lot, right?"

  "In the past, yes," Anna replies, shaking her head. "But not anymore."

  "How do you feel about him now?" Hellen asks.

  "Well, I'm... not sure," Anna hesitates. "I'm supposed to hate him and fear him, as I did since that... incident. But now that he's back, looking so pitiful like that, what am I supposed to do?"

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  "Your 'absolute empathy' is a gift, but it can also be a curse, An. It can make your traumas more severe than others'," Hellen says softly. "I recommended that you try Advanced Exposure Therapy, remember?"

  "Yeah, the hypnosis session to revisit that dreadful day?" Anna looks unconvinced.

  "To help you recall it from a different perspective, so you can confront it rather than avoid it," Hellen clarifies.

  "Alright, fine. I'll consider it." Anna shrugs reluctantly. Hellen knows her long-time patient is trying to evade the issue again, so she insists firmly.

  "I'll arrange it for your next appointment. Make sure to come, okay?"

  "You mean... Gabriel, too?" Anna asks nervously.

  "Of course," Hellen nods. "It's HIS hypnosis session, after all. And YOU will experience it with him."

  ___

  The office of the major crime unit at the Coldor Police Station has been extremely busy lately. Detectives are collaborating closely with the Evo Tech Solutions Analysis team to gather and review all memory records from users who could be witnesses in the Black Hood case. The last memory record from the only victim who was a dominant, raised suspicions that the culprit might be capable of memory manipulation, rendering the witnesses' testimonies potentially unreliable.

  Kyle has been nodding off when Marcus gives his shoulder a hard pat. Startled, Kyle jolts awake, still drowsy. He glances across the room, where Crystal is buzzing around like a bee, monitoring her team tirelessly. Kyle rubs his eyes, muttering, "That girl has been at it for five days straight without sleep. Is 'restlessness' her superpower or something?"

  "It's 'super resilience,' Detective," Crystal corrects him while checking her tablet. "And I do manage to catch some eye-shuts now and then."

  "Oh, that's great!" Kyle smiles awkwardly as he heads out for another cup of coffee.

  "Any results?" James asks Crystal as he returns.

  "Nothing so far," Crystal replies, shaking her head. "We've gone through nearly all the records you provided. Now we're working on the newly collected ones."

  "Yes, we've been trying to identify more potential witnesses and contact them for their records," James informs her. "I checked the individuals who registered their abilities as 'memory alteration' or 'memory change.' There are only two in Coldor recently, but they both have solid alibis. If the Black Hood had this power, he likely didn't register it honestly."

  "So the memory records are our only lead now," Crystal muses.

  Just then, a member of the Evo team calls out, "Crystal, there's something here!"

  "Where?" Crystal's eyes light up as she dashes toward the member's workstation.

  "This record is from a user with a super sense of smell. She caught a strong scent of detergent from someone coming from the direction of the crime scene. They didn't cross paths, so her memory is quite reliable."

  "Here's another one!" another member exclaims. "This user has an image of a man reflected in a metal can from the corner of his eye. I checked two other people who were closer to the reflected man; they should have seen him more clearly, but he didn't appear in their records at all."

  "That's it! He must have omitted those whose presence he was unaware of!" Crystal speculates, calling out to her team. "Everyone, let's follow that man's direction and find more passersby along that route! He couldn't alter all of their memories. The further he got from the crime scene, the more people would likely see him, and there would be clearer images of him."

  "Detective," Crystal turns to James, "please help us collect memory records from those passersby!"

  "Yes, ma'am!" James nods firmly, a smile of eagerness on his face. As Kyle sluggishly walks in, he is immediately pulled back to work by his enthusiastic team leader.

  ___

  Anna glances at Gabriel hesitantly, unsure how to start a normal conversation with him, let alone ask him to join her for the hypnosis session. After nearly a week of having him as her bodyguard, her initial irritation has gradually turned into a complex mix of feelings. As the youngest daughter of the city mayor and a successful businesswoman, people assume Anna has nothing to worry about. Even her family believes she can handle everything on her own. But the truth is, she is just a troubled sixteen-year-old girl grappling with PTSD and her unwanted superpower.

  Anna thought she had grown accustomed to acting tough and independent, but Gabriel's return and his continued treatment of her as his precious little sister have made her realize how much she has missed that connection. His presence during this dangerous time feels almost reassuring...

  "Hey! Stop right there!"

  Gabriel's shout startles Anna. She sees him chasing after a figure in a black hooded jacket. With swift movements, he grabs the shady guy's arm and pulls off his hood. Anna rushes over to see what's happening. Upon recognizing the guy's face, she exclaims, "Alex? Is that you?"

  The captured boy looks at Anna with bewildered eyes, struggling to break free. "Hey, Anna! Help me!"

  "Do you know him?" Gabriel asks, his tone suspicious.

  "He's my classmate," Anna replies, exasperated. "He's harmless."

  "Is... is that so?" Gabriel loosens his grip, releasing the boy.

  After apologizing and seeing Alex off, Anna returns to Gabriel, annoyance etched on her face. "That's the third time already!" she scolds. "Stop being so paranoid. You're scaring my friends and fans away!"

  "Sorry..." Gabriel mutters, lowering his head. "I've been too jumpy."

  "Forget it." Anna turns away, disappointed. "What was I even expecting?"

  She looks around as if searching for someone, then wonders aloud, "What is Rach doing anyway? She's been off work for days."

  In a quiet, remote location deep in the forest, Rachel is watching someone groveling on the ground, bound and helpless, desperately trying to escape her. That person's muffled cries are lost in the stillness, unheard by anyone. Rachel slowly follows, seemingly reveling in the sight of her prey's resistance. The hammer in her hand drips with blood.